Fallingpaw's Fate
by MiraClarinet
Summary: Firestar and Leafpool are dead, and now Bramblestar is leader. When a prophecy surrounds a young apprentice, will she be able to fullfil it? Rated T for room
1. Allegiances

_**Just a note, this story happens after PoT and may not be accurate to any deaths or injuries, so bear with me. I will only put allegiances for ThunderClan.**_

_**Disclaimer: I do not own Warriors. Erin Hunter does.**_

**Allegiances: ThunderClan**

**Leader**

**Bramblestar-**Dark brown tabby tom with amber eyes

**Apprentice, Sparrowpaw**

**Deputy**

**Poppyheart- **Tortoiseshell she-cat

**Medicine Cat**

**Jayflight- **Gray Tabby tom with blue eyes

**Apprentice, Hawkpaw**

**Warriors**

**Cloudtail- **long haired white tom

**Brackenfur-**Golden brown tabby tom

**Sorreltail- **Tortoiseshell and white she-cat with amber eyes

**Apprentice, Snowpaw**

**Thornclaw-**golden brown tabby tom

**Apprentice, Firepaw**

**Ashfur-**pale gray tom with dark blue eyes

**Stormfur-**dark gray tom with amber eyes, formerly of RiverClan

**Apprentice, Silverpaw**

**Birchfall-**light brown tabby tom

**Graystripe-**long-haired gray tom

**Berrynose-**cream-colored tom

**Hazeltail-**small gray-and-white she-cat

**Mousewhisker-**gray-and-white tom

**Honeystream-**light brown tabby she-cat

**Apprentice, Leafpaw**

**Lionfang-**golden tabby tom with amber eyes

**Apprentice, Emberpaw**

**Hollythorn-**black she-cat with green eyes

**Apprentice, Fallingpaw**

**Icestripe-**Almost white blue-grey she-cat

**Foxheart-**Ginger tom

**Apprentices**

**Sparrowpaw-**Light brown tom with green eyes

**Snowpaw-**White tom

**Silverpaw-**Light silver tabby she-cat with pale blue eyes

**Leafpaw-**light brown tabby she-cat with green eyes

**Firepaw-**Ginger tabby she-cat

**Emberpaw- **Bright ginger she-cat

**Fallingpaw-**light silver tabby she-cat

**Hawkpaw-**brown tabby tom with amber eyes

**Queens**

**Cindersong-**Gray tabby she-cat, mother of Ashfur's kits Sootkit and Swallowkit

**Squirrelflight- **dark ginger she-cat with green eyes, mother of Bramblestar's kit Tigerkit

**Brightheart-**white she-cat with ginger patches, mother of Cloudtail's kit Gingerkit

**Brook where Small Fish Swim(Brook)-**brown tabby she-cat formerly of the Tribe of Rushing Water,

Mother of Stormfur's kits Rushkit and Rabbitkit

**Whitewing-**white she-cat with green eyes, mother of Thornclaw's kit Pinekit

**Millie- **heavily pregnant silver tabby she-cat with blue eyes, former kittypet

**Elders**

**Ferncloud-**pale gray she-cat with green eyes

**Dustpelt-**dark brown tabby tom

**Sandstorm-**pale ginger she-cat, retired early due to permanent leg injury

**_Thank you Blazenedheart-Ashfur's Love for the Berrynose, Hazeltail and Mousewhisker correction. Thanks again!_**


	2. Chapter 1: Tune out

"Remember, WindClan is known for sped. In battle, you must be faster then they are." Hollythorn mewed.

Fallingpaw barely realized she had spoken. She stared off at the WindClan border near where they were training. The training hollow had been full, so this was the second best place.

"Fallingpaw! Are you even listening to me?" Hollythorn hissed. Fallingpaw jerked upright and out of her daydreaming, tilting her head.

"Sorry. It won't happen again." She vowed. Hollythorn growled.

"You had better hope not. Now pretend I am a WindClan cat." Fallingpaw's mentor ordered before crouching down.

"Why WindClan? Preparing to invade our borders?" A voice meowed from the border. Hollythorn sat up.

"I have been meaning to teach my apprentice moves depending on what Clan she is battling, unlike your Clan, Heatherstripe. Besides, last time I heard and by the looks of you, you should not be leaving your camp." Hollythorn snapped back. The WindClan cat's belly was swollen with the kits she was carrying.

"You have no idea what it is like being stuck in camp all day!" Heatherstripe shot back.

"If I were to have kits I would tell who the father was!" Hollythorn hissed.

"If you knew who the father was, you would know why it is meant to be secret!" Heatherstripe replied. Hollythorn flicked Fallingpaw with her tail. _What is going on? I zone out for a second and suddenly my mentor is yelling at a pregnant WindClan cat._ Fallingpaw thought. She rolled her eyes and zoned out the rest of the argument. Tuning others out was somewhat of a gift of hers. She never failed to use the gift.

"Fallingpaw? Fallingpaw! Will you stop doing that?" Hollythorn begged. Heatherstripe snorted on the WindClan border before turning away.

"Sorry." She apologized again.

"Lets go back to camp." Hollythorn sighed and led the way back to camp.

Fallingpaw grabbed a mouse from the fresh-kill pile and padded over to join her best friend, Emberpaw, who was eating by the apprentices' den.

"How was the training?" The ginger she-cat asked.

"Terrible. I can't seem to keep my mind on training. Think it was making Hollythorn frustrated so we went home." Fallingpaw replied. She turned her gaze on the medicine den. Inside, she could hear the medicine cats talking.

"Hawkpaw must be getting a lesson." Emberpaw commented through a mouthful of the pigeon she was eating.

"Guess so." She mewed.

"But I'm hungry!" A kit cried from the nursery. Mews of agreement from the other kits filled the clearing. Fallingpaw recognized her own brother and sister among them. She could just make out a faint murmuring among the queens before her mother stepped out and bounded to the fresh-kill pile. She flicked her tail at Fallingpaw and Emberpaw before grabbing a mouthful of prey and bounding back. The friends laughed as Emberpaw's sister, Gingerkit, tried to get out of the nursery. Brightheart caught and pulled her back. She was almost old enough to be an apprentice, and Fallingpaw could already predict she would be a handful to her mentor. Emberpaw and Firepaw would be made warriors soon as well. They were the eldest apprentices, but not by much. Snowpaw was only less then a moon away, while Sparrowpaw wasn't much farther from him.

"I'm beginning to wonder if we will have enough warriors to mentor all the kits we have." Leafpaw, Squirrelflight and Bramblestar's daughter, had emerged from the apprentices' den. She stretched and greeted the two she-cats.

"Well, hopefully we will all be warriors. There will hardly be enough room for us and them!" Emberpaw pointed out. Leafpaw nodded, her eyes full of excitement at the thought of becoming a warrior.

"I won't, I am almost sure of it. I will never be a warrior." Fallingpaw mewed. She looked at her paws.

"What do you mean? Of course you will become a warrior!" Leafpaw gasped. She ran her tail soothingly across Fallingpaw's flank.

"Right, and I am leader of ShadowClan." Fallingpaw replied. She stood up and slipped into the apprentices' den. Leafpaw whispered something to Emberpaw before she padded off to meet her mentor, Honeystream, for training.


	3. Chapter 2: A dream

_Fallingpaw perked her ears, alert for any sign of movement. Ahead of her, the bushes rustled, and a tiny squeak gave away the mouse that was hiding beneath it. She pounced, but instead of landing on the mouse, she fell down a hole. Everything went dark as she continued to fall. _

"_StarClan help me!" She cried. She landed with a painful splash in the lake. Kicking with her legs, she swam like a RiverClan cat to the RiverClan side of the lake, not realizing it until she was safely under trees. Suddenly, cats with the scent of RiverClan and stars in their pelts surrounded her._

"Unwelcome and young will join together and a prophecy will be repeated. History will return and only those of old will remember falling's fate." _One cat, a silver she-cat mewed. _

"_Wait, why are you telling me? Aren't Hawkpaw and Jayflight the medicine cats? They should be getting prophecies, not me! Besides, I am not even of your Clan!" Fallingpaw gasped._

"_You will soon find out." An almost identical silver she-cat whispered in her ear before joining the other. _

The vision blurred and Fallingpaw blinked open her eyes. She was back in the apprentices' den. In her nest, Silverpaw was sleeping with Snowpaw at her side. The tom glared at Fallingpaw.

"You make more noise then an attacking badger!" He growled. Like his father, he was easily angered and almost always grumpy. He was only nice to Silverpaw. Silverpaw lifted her head, woken by the toms growling.

"Leave her alone Snowpaw! Just because you are the kin of Firestar doesn't mean you can order others around like that!" Silverpaw mewed, swiping her silver tail across his mouth. Fallingpaw realized she looked almost exactly like the two she-cats in her dream. Unlike them though, she was ThunderClan, not RiverClan. She stepped out to find that Silverpaw's half brother was padding over.

"Is Silverpaw awake? I want to take her to do some battle training." He meowed. Fallingpaw nodded, but quickly called him back.

"You had a RiverClan sister, right?" She asked.

"Yes, and a mother in RiverClan. Why?" He replied.

"Were they both almost an identical silver like Silverpaw?" She asked. Her mind began to whirl.

"Yes. Graystripe told me they looked almost like sisters, not mother and daughter." Stormfur meowed. He blinked as she bounded away. _What is going on here?_

_**Okay, very short chapter, but hey, not much you can put in a chapter like this.**_


	4. Chapter 3: Seeing Silver

Fallingpaw slipped out of the camp entrance. The image of the three cats, all related to Stormfur, flashed in her mind. Their silver bodies merged as one, and she struggled not to fall over in confusion. _What is going on? Why is it surrounding me? _She thought, her mouth open to scent for prey. A rustle in the bushes caught her senses and she turned around. Four eyes stared out at her.

"Who or what are you?" She asked. She stood her ground as the pairs of eyes glanced at each other. They didn't reply, so Fallingpaw leaped at them. She landed directly on top of two kits.

"Watch it!" The she-cat hissed. Fallingpaw stepped backward and stared angrily at them.

"Sootkit, shut up. I am older then you and actually allowed to be out here. Swallowkit, stop hissing like I am an enemy warrior. What are you two doing here?" She hissed at her brother and sister. The gray tabby tom sat down and let his fur lie flat.

"We were just exploring. And you startled us!" He replied. His dark blue eyes were wide. Sootkit lashed her tail over his mouth.

"He means we asked mother if we could and she said we could." Sootkit mewed. Her eyes danced back and forth, giving away her lie.

"You are a terrible liar. Besides, no queen would allow her kits out. When I was a kit I asked and Cindersong said she would never let her kits out until they were apprentices." Fallingpaw laughed. She picked up Sootkit, who tried to flee, and pushed her brother forward with her muzzle. Only halfway back to camp, she heard a loud yowl.

"They're gone! Sootkit and Swallowkit are gone!" Cindersong yowled. Gasps of surprise and fear rippled just as loud. Sootkit squeaked in Fallingpaw's mouth and Swallowkit shrunk back.

"We will send out a search party at once!" Bramblestar called over the noise. Fallingpaw's eyes widened and she set Sootkit down to grab both kits by the scruff. They let out little mewls as she ran with them dangling, the kits bumping against each other and their carrier. She burst into the clearing and Cindersong mewed happily.

"They are alright! Thank you Fallingpaw!" She meowed, rubbing her muzzle against her daughter's.

"Where did you find them?" Bramblestar asked as Cindersong and Ashfur licked their kits gently.

"They found me. I was about to go hunting and I found them watching me from behind." Fallingpaw replied. Bramblestar nodded, his mind cleared.

"Is something wrong?" Sorreltail asked, padding up to her. The other cats had returned to their dens as the sun was going down.

"I don't think I am made out to be a ThunderClan warrior." Fallingpaw replied.

"Not made to be a ThunderClan warrior? Nonsense! You have pure ThunderClan blood and you know it!" She argued.

"I don't think blood really matters." Fallingpaw pointed out. Sorreltail shook her head.

"I have seen your fighting moves when you train with Snowpaw. You are excellent, especially if you were to be fighting a WindClan or ShadowClan cat." Sorreltail mewed.

"Yeah, but I can also beat a ThunderClan cat paws down. The one Clan I can never seem to get right is RiverClan. Besides, I can't hunt for my life. I can't even catch a mouse in my dreams!" Fallingpaw shook her head and looked at her paws.

"You are still young." Sorreltail meowed, and with that she turned away and disappeared into the warriors' den. Fallingpaw still wasn't convinced. _I wish there was some way I could try out the other Clans. Then I could see if I really belong in ThunderClan or another. _She thought. She closed her eyes and wished for a sign from StarClan. She opened them and gazed into the sky. Above her, Silverpelt looked like a river of stars, spirits of her warrior ancestors. She slipped back into the apprentices' den and closed her eyes.

_She sat at the edge of a river, staring into the swirling water in deep concentration. The sun burned into her pelt, making it uncomfortably warm. Behind her, only the wind stirred the bushes. She could feel eyes searing into her fur. _

"_Whose there?" She called. No answer. She looked back into the water, gasping as she saw what was reflected. As if behind her, many cats' faces gazed back at her. At the very front, the two silver cats and the former medicine cat and leader, Firestar and Leafpool. As she watched them in the water, Firestar and Leafpool turned away, making way for two toms. They smelled of RiverClan. _

"Unwelcome and young will join together and a prophecy will be repeated. History will return and only those of old will remember falling's fate._" All four cats mewed in unison._

"_I know, but who are you?" Fallingpaw begged, whirling around. The forest was no longer there, but instead a whole forest lay ahead of her. No scent of the lake, no sign of her Clan. She turned again to look back into the water, but even the river was gone, replaced by a black Thunderpath. Monsters swiped past, ruffling her fur. She bounded away and into the forest. She passed a large clearing, at the center were four oak trees, though not as tall as the boulder in the middle. Same of the ground felt as if it had been churned up. Those places had saplings and new grass spreading throughout. She wanted to stop and explore the area she was in, but something kept pushing her. She was able to stop when she passed a river. To her surprise, the territory looked more like the first part of her dream. She followed the river, noticing the stepping stones. When she thought that she would have to turn back, an island came into view. She crossed over to it. Around her, starry cats from RiverClan acted as though they were alive. She recognized the two toms from earlier._

"_Where am I?" She asked, bounding up to one._

"_You will find out later." Fallingpaw spun around. The silver she-cats were once again behind her. _

"_A-are you Silverpaw's kin?" She asked. The silver cats nodded._

"_I am her half-sister, Feathertail. This is my mother, Silverstream." The smaller one purred. _

"_We died before the Great Journey." Silverstream added. _

"_I was with Emberpaw's mother when the chosen cats had to go. My mother died giving birth to me and Stormfur." Feathertail finished._

"_Oh. But wait, why did you come to me, and not one of my own Clan?" Fallingpaw asked. They shook their heads and disappeared. _

Fallingpaw found herself blinking open her eyes back in her own territory. Emberpaw was gazing at her worriedly and Firepaw was nowhere in sight.

"Are you alright? You were mumbling in your sleep." She commented. Fallingpaw nodded.

"Just a dream."


	5. Chapter 4: Not a Good Good Bye

"Bramblestar says to keep trying to get your hunting skills up, so tell me how to stalk a mouse." Hollythorn mewed. Fallingpaw sighed and crouched down.

"You have to keep your weight on your haunches." She replied, and began to try and show her mentor the stalk.

"You are right, but your crouch looks like a three-legged blind badger." Hollythorn pointed out. She crouched down and showed her apprentice the crouch. It looked nothing like Fallingpaw's.

"I'm never going to get it!" Fallingpaw moaned, letting herself fall to the ground. Hollythorn flicked her tail at her apprentice's ear.

"Of course you will, it will just take some work." She comforted.

"Yeah right." Fallingpaw replied bitterly. She glared at the stream separating ThunderClan from WindClan, remembering the water and territory of her dream.

"Are you tuning me out again?" Hollythorn asked, her eyes full of worry.

"No. I was just thinking this time. Do you really think I am meant to be a ThunderClan cat?" She replied sadly. Hollythorn's eyes widened.

"Of course you are meant to be ThunderClan! Both your parents are full bred ThunderClan cats." Her mentor gazed back, her eyes even more worried then before. Fallingpaw shook her head.

"You have seen me fight. I can beat any cat except one from RiverClan, and that includes one from ThunderClan. I can't hunt for my life, not even in my dreams." She noted.

"You are still a fairly new apprentice. You will get it if you will listen to me more."

"That is exactly what Sorreltail said! Won't anyone listen to me?"

"I will listen to you when you listen to me!" Hollythorn snapped. Fallingpaw stared at her sadly.

"Then maybe I better leave." Hollythorn gasped and opened her mouth to protest, but Fallingpaw had already bounded away. The apprentice crossed the stream but didn't stop, even though Hollythorn was calling for her to come back. She paused for a second to look back. Hollythorn was sitting where Fallingpaw had left her, her head hanging low to the ground. Fallingpaw blinked and turned around. She knew where she was heading, but she hoped that she had taken the signs from StarClan correctly.

Fallingpaw paused, all senses alert. The scent of two Clans wafted and mixed in her nostrils. She had come this far, she couldn't be caught on another Clan's territory now. She finally passed the Horseplace.

"Not much farther. I have to find their camp now." She told herself.

"Find what camp?" A growl warned behind her. She whirled around to meet the RiverClan deputy, Mosspelt, growling at her, two young warriors and an apprentice by her side. _Patrol,_ Fallingpaw thought.

"Get out of our territory!" The apprentice hissed. She was quieted by the older tom.

"Leave it to Mosspelt, Thornpaw." He whispered.

"What is a ThunderClan cat doing in our territory, looking for our camp? Spying?" The other tom growled. Fallingpaw shrunk back, her common sense began to kick in.

"N-no. I was lost, but recognized the RiverClan scent. I thought that if I found the camp I could find someone to help me find my way back." She lied. Mosspelt looked her up and down.

"Well, you were wrong. Unless Mistystar says otherwise, you will stay at our camp as our prisoner from now on."


	6. Chapter 5: Prisoner with a Partner

_**Note: I use Mallowkit/paw and Sneezekit/paw in this chapter. I do not know if they are girls or boys, so they will both be girls because they sound like girls in Dark River. I can always correct it if I am wrong, so just let me know.**_

Fallingpaw bit her tongue, waiting for Mistystar to finish looking her down. They had just returned to find the leader getting ready for a patrol.

"She will stay as our prisoner, as you suggested, Mosspelt. As her punishment for trespassing, she will be in charge of elders, which will free our apprentices up for extra training in case of a rescue attack from ThunderClan. She will only be able to eat what we do not, and will not be allowed out of camp or sight. As a punishment, Lightpaw will be in charge of getting moss for the elders and finding a place away from the other cats to sleep. She will not be allowed into the apprentices' den and will stay with the prisoner for breaking the warrior code. She will hold the same rules for food." Mistystar meowed finally. Fallingpaw blinked. _A leader would do the same thing to one of her Clan as she does to a prisoner, or is it the exact opposite? _Before she could ponder it anymore, a light brown tabby stepped forward, her head dangling sadly. Disappointment clouded Mistystar's eyes. The cats who had gathered dispersed into their dens or to eat and share tongues. The tabby stayed, looking at Fallingpaw.

"I guess we had better get started then. I'll go get some moss and you can start picking ticks. Willowsong should have some mouse bile to help." She mewed after a bit. Fallingpaw blinked and nodded. She padded to where she thought was the medicine den. Inside, a grey cat was sorting through herbs. She looked up as Fallingpaw entered.

"You must be here for mouse bile for the elders. Here you go." The gray cat, who Fallingpaw guessed was the medicine cat, handed her a stick with foul smelling moss at the end. Fallingpaw took it gingerly and padded out. Lightpaw had returned, rolling a large ball of moss.

"Good. This should be enough." She mewed. She led Fallingpaw to a thicket. Inside, she could hear the faint chatting of raspy voices.

"Lightpaw, prisoner." An elderly, smoky black tom greeted.

"She probably has a name, if she is ThunderClan." Lightpaw commented carefully. The tom purred.

"Of course she does, but do you know it?" A brown tabby tom added wisely. His clouded eyes danced slightly.

"Sorry Voletooth. I wasn't thinking. Maybe she would like to tell us her name." The apprentice mewed politely. Voletooth purred.

"Oh. I'm Fallingpaw." She blinked.

"Nice to meet you. I am Blackclaw, and of course this is Voletooth." The black tom purred. Fallingpaw nodded to both of them.

"What, no greeting?" Voletooth joked. Fallingpaw blinked again.

"Voletooth is blind." Lightpaw whispered in Fallingpaw's ear.

"I may be blind, but I am not deaf!" Voletooth snapped.

"Sorry." The apprentices mewed in unison.

"I was joking." He purred in amusement.

"I figured that. You are a lot different then I expected a blind cat to be." Fallingpaw commented.

"What, blind cats are supposed to be different?" Blackclaw raised an eyebrow.

"Well, I guess I just thought all blind cats were like Jayflight. He is always grumpy." She corrected.

"He is probably just grumpy because he was born blind. I was blinded by a fox. I got to see the world, unlike him." Fallingpaw shrugged, realizing again he could not see it.

"I guess so." She added. "Now where are those ticks?"

Fallingpaw let herself fall onto the fresh moss of her new nest. Next to her, the equally exhausted Lightpaw rolled onto her back, tiredly batting at a moss ball. It slipped from her paws toward Fallingpaw. Leaping up, Fallingpaw batted at it herself, hitting it back and forth with speed that could be admired by even WindClan, at least a little bit.

"ThunderClan would give up a fast cat in risk of her getting captured, just for a spy mission?" Lightpaw asked.

"I don't know, but probably not. Besides, doesn't any cat believe me when I say I am not a spy? I left of my own accord." Fallingpaw mewed, flicking the ball back to Lightpaw.

"Why? Won't your mentor wonder why you ran away?" She asked, mixing the ball with the moss in her nest.

"She knows why, and she watched me run off."

"So why did you leave?"

"Nobody listened to me. I can't hunt for my life, and I can fight any Clan except RiverClan. I guess that is why I came here." Fallingpaw admitted. She realized that she had just told a RiverClan cat that she couldn't fight RiverClan.

"Luckily no other cat heard that. Are you mouse-brained or something?" Lightpaw hissed, flicking her tail over Fallingpaw's mouth and glancing around the clearing.

"About what, coming to a Clan that I can't fight or saying so out loud?" She asked.

"Both." Lightpaw replied.

"Well, either way I realized how mouse-brained it was after I said it." Fallingpaw joked. Lightpaw laughed.

"Don't mingle with the prisoner too much. I don't want you to become friends with a _spy_." A pale gray tabby interrupted. Lightpaw jumped up.

"Sorry Graymist." She mewed, her eyes wide with surprise. Graymist shook her head and disappeared into a clump of brambles.

"Who is Graymist?" Fallingpaw asked, looking back at where she had disappeared.

"My old mentor. She is a queen now, so I had to get a mentor change. Now I am Mistystar's apprentice." Lightpaw replied.

"Why are you being punished?"

"I attacked Sneezepaw." Lightpaw replied matter-of-factly.

"Sneezepaw? Why?" Fallingpaw remembered the tortoiseshell she-cat from the last gathering. She realized that the apprentice had mentioned her mentor, Graymist. _I knew I heard the name Graymist before!_

"She started it. She said I was a lame swimmer and even worse fisher. If she hadn't been teasing me, I wouldn't have 'practiced' my fighting moves on her." Lightpaw mewed bitterly. Fallingpaw caught her stare in the direction of what she guessed was the apprentices' den. In the shadows, Sneezepaw was speaking to her sister. The tortoiseshell kept shooting glances at Lightpaw.

"If it helps anything, I have had the same problems with Snowpaw. I am just glad to get away from him." Fallingpaw comforted.

"Well either way, I am stuck here." Lightpaw sighed.

"Stuck in camp or with me, the prisoner?" Fallingpaw asked. She was beginning to feel the RiverClan cat was talking t her for the company, not because they were becoming quick friends.

"Sorry, I didn't mean for it to sound like that. I meant stuck with this punishment. I think we have a lot of stuff in common and can be really good friends." Lightpaw apologized. Fallingpaw nodded and closed her eyes, happy for sleep.

**_Sorry for previous italics. It keeps italicizing after thoughts and I keep forgeting to check and fix it. _**


	7. Chapter 6: Fallingpaw of RiverClan

**_Note: I had some dialogue in my mind between Fallingpaw and Mistystar a few days before this chapter that I never put in on accident. Besides, it doesn't fit anywhere unless we would want another short chapter. Well, I will make this one longer by putting that in. Yeah, that will work fine. Sorry for earlier confusion!_**

"Fallingpaw, Mistystar wants to see you." Mosspelt mewed, prodding Fallingpaw in the side.

"I will be right there." Fallingpaw replied. She stood up and stretched and padded into Mistystar's den.

"Hello Fallingpaw. I would like to discuss something with you. Tonight is the night of the gathering, and no ThunderClan cat has come to get you. I have decided that we will either send a cat to take you back or take you with us to the gathering so you can return to your Clanmates." Mistystar meowed.

"But I don't want to go back! I left because I don't belong in ThunderClan!" Fallingpaw argued, trying to be as polite as possible. At that moment Blackclaw came in.

"We were wondering what was going on with our second slave, er, I mean caretaker." He meowed jokingly. Mistystar seemed surprised at how the tom thought of Fallingpaw with enough respect to joke around about it.

"We were just discussing how I should send her back to her clan." Mistystar mewed, hiding the surprise from her voice. Blackclaw perked up.

"Send her back? But Voletooth and I enjoy having her around!" He argued. Mistystar sighed.

"Prove to me that you are not the only ones who want her to stay by the gathring and I might rethink it." She meowed. Blackclaw thought for a second.

"Icewing likes to have her around to watch her kits. Lightpaw thinks of her as a good friend and Graymist likes to come and talk when fallingpaw and Lightpaw are in our den taking care of our ticks. Besides, she has obeyed all the rules you set for her." He meowed thoughtfully.

"I will think about it, but if they ask at the gathering, I will not hesitate to tell them she is here." Mistystar mewed. With that, she disapeared outside.

"Thank you." Fallingpaw whispered to the elder. He nodded and followed Mistystar outside.

A few days later

"Fallingpaw, wake up! Mistystar has called a meeting!" Lightpaw prodded her in the side with a paw. Fallingpaw sat up and listened.

"We have been holding Fallingpaw prisoner for almost a moon now. No ThunderClan cat has come to get her, so we have decided she could not be a spy as we thought before. Lightpaw is ready to rejoin the apprentices in their den, so Fallingpaw will be without company. I have spoken with Willowsong and Mosspelt and we have decided that Fallingpaw has shown her loyalty to RiverClan and not ThunderClan. No ThunderClan cat mentioned they wanted her back if we had her or that they would fight to get her back. Our elders have come to love her like a true RiverClan apprentice, so from now on, she will be known as just that." Mistystar mewed. The two friends perked up.

"I didn't expect this!" Lightpaw whispered. Murmurs and nods of agreement had began in the rest of the Clan.

"Fallingpaw, step forward to receive your mentor." Fallingpaw obeyed. She sat at the foot of the Highpile and looked up at the leader. "Minnowspot, you are now ready for an apprentice. You will mentor Fallingpaw in the ways of RiverClan." The dappled she-cat slipped away from the crowd to join them at the pile of pebbles. Minnowspot touched the new RiverClan apprentice's nose and they rejoined the group. The Clan chanted Fallingpaw's name.

"After the meeting I will teach you to swim." She whispered.

"From tonight on, Fallingpaw and Lightpaw will sleep in the apprentices' den like the others." Mistystar jumped down and the crowd dispersed. Fallingpaw could just hear faint groans from Sneezepaw and Mallowpaw. Mistystar had joined Lightpaw and they were padding over.

"Congratulations Fallingpaw!" Lightpaw purred, touching her nose.

"Do you mind if we join you for a swimming lesson? Lightpaw needs to work on her swimming a bit after not doing it for so long." Mistystar mewed. Minnowspot nodded and the older cats led the way out of camp. Fallingpaw remembered the first time she had entered camp. They had used pebbly islands in the stream to get in.

"We will start at the stream for you, Fallingpaw." Minnowspot ordered. She demonstrated the swimming technique and soon Fallingpaw was swimming as well as Lightpaw. The sun was already beginning to fall.

"How about tomorrow we join together again to do some fishing?" Mistystar suggested. Fallingpaw guessed she was Minnowspot's first apprentice and that Mistystar wanted to be around to help.

"Sounds good." Minnowspot agreed.

_**Well, not as short. Hope that clears up anything. I also added something to Mistystar's first dialogue after she calls the meeting. **_


	8. Chapter 7: Gathering

"Cats that will be going to the gathering are Minnowspot, Mosspelt, Pebblestripe, Sneezepaw, Mallowpaw, Stonepaw, Lightpaw and Fallingpaw." Mistystar announced.

"I didn't think I was going to be chosen." Fallingpaw commented.

"Me neither. I didn't think they would want both me and Sneezepaw going. Mistystar ordered everyone to put us on different patrols." Lightpaw agreed, looking over at Sneezepaw. She was growling something angrily at her sister.

"Mistystar is gathering up the cats going. Lets hurry so we don't fall behind!" Fallingpaw commented. Lightpaw nodded and they bounded over to join the crowd of cats.

Fallingpaw waited until Lightpaw was half-way across the log bridge before jumping on. Behind her, Minnowspot meowed her encouragement.

"If you fall off, you know how to swim!" Lightpaw reminded her as she reached the other side. Fallingpaw laughed and started moving a little faster, reaching the other side. _Great, just RiverClan and ThunderClan tonight. _Fallingpaw thought as she scented the air.

"Come on you two, you are holding everyone up." Minnowspot whispered. They mewed apologies and moved away.

"Are we all across? Then go on in." Mistystar meowed. She led the cats into the clearing, Fallingpaw staying close to Lightpaw. Fallingpaw recognized so many ThunderClan cats, almost all of them, but some had slipped her mind after being away so long.

"There is a group of apprentices. Lets go talk to them." Lightpaw mewed, flicking her tail to three apprentices Fallingpaw recognized at once. Before Fallingpaw could argue, Lightpaw was already almost there.

"Hello. See Firepaw, I told you RiverClan was here. Mouse-brain though you were ShadowClan!" Emberpaw mewed, flicking her sister with her tail.

"So what? I just got over that cold, remember? I still can't smell right." Firepaw argued.

"Hello. I'm Lightpaw." Lightpaw mewed to them, her tail flicking playfully. Fallingpaw grumbled something mostly to herself, but the ThunderClan apprentices heard and recognized her, their eyes widening.

"Fallingpaw! We haven't seen you in about two moons now! You've been with RiverClan? Wait till Hollythorn hears you are coming back!" Emberpaw mewed, rubbing her muzzle against her friend's. Fallingpaw pulled away, shaking her head.

"I'm not coming back. I'm a RiverClan apprentice now. The only thing that would even make me seem ThunderClan is my blood. I like it in RiverClan, much more then ThunderClan." She mewed. Her heart felt like it was being torn apart, but she was a RiverClan apprentice now, and she had won the trust of her new Clanmates.

"We can still be a little bit of friends, right? Like at gatherings?" Leafpaw asked.

"Of course, but only at gatherings. And if we meet in battle, we will have to promise we will fight with all our strength." Fallingpaw agreed. Firepaw perked up.

"We at least have to tell Hollythorn and Ashfur. The others will hear at the gathering, but Ashfur was your father and Hollythorn was your old mentor. They have been devastated since you left. If Cindersong was here, she wouldn't et you out of her grasp." She commented. Fallingpaw and Lightpaw nodded. Emberpaw looked around. Sure enough, Ashfur, Hollythorn, and Poppyheart were talking with Minnowspot. Fallingpaw wondered if she had told the ThunderClan cats yet. They began to move forward, catching the eye of Minnowspot.

"Oh, here comes my apprentice now." She purred proudly. The three ThunderClan cats turned, their eyes widening. Ashfur was the first to bound over, followed by Hollythorn and Poppyheart.

"Fallingpaw! We were wondering were you went!" Ashfur mewed, almost out of breath as he rubbed up against his daughter. Hollythorn purred.

"I had a feeling RiverClan was where you went. Are you a lot happier?" Hollythorn mewed. Fallingpaw sensed a spark of pain in Hollythorn's mew, but could barely hear anything except her father's purring. She tried to pull away, but he wouldn't let her go.

"Of course I am a lot happier! I feel like I was meant to be born in RiverClan." She replied. Ashfur stopped, licking his fur in embarrassment. She realized Lightpaw was at a distance, watching.

"Have you made any new friends?" Ashfur asked. He was acting like a father.

"Yes. Lightpaw, I want to introduce you to some ThunderClan cats." She replied, signaling Lightpaw over. She came over shyly.

"Hello." She mewed.

"Lightpaw, this is my father, Ashfur, my old mentor, Hollythorn and the ThunderClan deputy Poppyheart. Everyone, this is Lightpaw." Fallingpaw pointed to each cat in turn. They nodded and mewed their introductions. Hollythorn turned to Minnowspot.

"So, has she tried to tune you out yet?" She asked. Fallingpaw bent her head in embarrassment.

"Sorry Hollythorn, but no. I guess I can pay more attention to stuff I am better at then stuff I need to learn. I love to swim like any other RiverClan cat, and I can fish! I don't have to learn to chase things as much, so I can bring back much more prey." Fallingpaw explained.

"Yes. She is excellent and everything we do in RiverClan just seems to come naturally." Minnowspot added. Before Hollythorn could reply, two more scents reached Fallingpaw.

"WindClan and ShadowClan are here." She commented. Onestar yowled for the meeting to start, and Mistystar moved forward first.

"We have a new apprentice and two new kits. Fallingpaw is here today. Graymist's kits still do not have names." Mistystar mewed. Fallingpaw could hear surprised gasps and murmurs coming from the ThunderClan cats. On the Great Oak Bramblestar's eyes were wide.

"Well, I am glad Fallingpaw has found a place she was meant to belong. ThunderClan has two new kits as well. Featherkit and Ravenkit are both healthy. We also have three new warriors and three new apprentices. Sparrowflight, Snowfall and Silverstreak were unable to make it as they are sitting their vigil, but Sootpaw, Swallowpaw and Tigerpaw are here with us." All of the older cats, even Bramblestar himself looked scared of the name Tigerpaw. _But Tigerpaw is his own daughter!_ She thought. She glanced around and saw her brother and sister sitting proudly together, Sootpaw sitting near Icestripe and Swallowpaw by Berrynose. Tigerpaw was sitting by Foxheart, glancing around sadly as if she had no clue why everyone was staring at her and muttering darkly.

"You know them well?" Lightpaw asked, following her gaze.

"Sootpaw and Swallowpaw are my younger siblings." Fallingpaw replied. She looked up again. Onestar had stepped forward.

"WindClan is doing well. We have four healthy kits born to Heatherstripe. Their names are Lionkit, Blizzardkit, Brightkit and Crowkit. We also have a new apprentice and three new warriors. Morningpaw, Sedgefur, Swallowfeather and Thistletail are here with us today." He meowed. He stepped back and allowed Blackstar to come forward.

"We also have three new warriors. Flametail, Tigerheart and Dawnpoppy could not make it tonight." He meowed. The gathering began to break up, and Fallingpaw found herself pushed down by two bundles of fur.

"We thought we would never see you again!" Sootpaw screeched. Fallingpaw pushed her and Swallowpaw off and looked at them. Their eyes were wide with happiness. Sootpaw's light gray fur was ruffled in excitement and Swallowpaw's darker tabby pelt was the exact opposite. Behind them, Fallingpaw saw her mother watching her with round, sad eyes from where she was sitting by Honeystream. Fallingpaw apologized with her eyes and glanced at Lionfang. He looked proud like a father, even though he had no known kits.

"So you are the cute little cats Fallingpaw has told me so much about." Lightpaw mewed, batting Sootpaw on the ear. Sootpaw giggled.

"Now if we get in a battle with RiverClan I can show off my fighting moves to my sister!" She purred, crouching down and wiggling her tail in the air.

"Just because we are sisters doesn't mean we should show mercy in battle remember. Do you promise me that?" Fallingpaw asked, becoming serious. Both new apprentices nodded. Fallingpaw flicked them with her tail and the RiverClan cats grouped together. ThunderClan would be the last to leave if they left before them.

"Bye Fallingpaw!" Tigerpaw called. Fallingpaw flicked her tail and joined her Clanmates as they left the island.


End file.
